Well, we all have to admit that we’re kind of into rosy flush to a certain extent, but when that redness turns to dry, inflamed splotchy skin, it’s not as cute. Red blotchy, uneven complexion affects many women at any age – but fortunately you don’t have to endure in silence. If you suffer from facial redness, know that you’re not alone and believe it or not, it’s also a symptom that many A-list celebrities suffer from! Cameron Diaz, Renee Zellweger and Amy Adams are among the celebs who area dealing with the condition.
Have you ever wondered how to banish skin redness for good? SKIN has the answer for you. There are products that can help calm your sensitive skin and combat facial redness. In this section, Dr. Low Chai Ling, Medical Director at The SW1 Clinic talks about facial flushing and the best skincare products for getting redness under control.
Your Redness: Blushing and flushing, often accompanied by tiny red pimple-like bumps
It might mean you have rosacea. Typically starting between the ages of 30 and 50 (and more commonly in fair-skinned individual). Characterised by dilatation of blood vessels, causing redness at the slightest agitation – from cold, heat, alcohol, wind, stress or spicy food. You may want to start by tweaking your lifestyle to avoid everyday triggers. Recognising what trigger your flare-ups and minimising these aggravating factors will make a significant difference in managing your skin in the long run.
Your redness: Taut, tight and itchy skin
It might mean your skin is dehydrated, either due to excessive loss of moisture or lack of moisture. Cracks start to form in the skin causing moisture to seep out allowing irritants in. When this happens, other products in your routine that didn’t irritate your skin before might now and lead to facial redness and itchiness.
Your redness: scaly, rough patches
It could be due to dermatitis or eczema flare-up. When there’s a breach in the surface barrier that protects the skin, that allows water to easily escape, causing extreme dryness and flakiness. The over-reactive immune cells rush to the area to respond, triggering an inflammation.
Redness: SW1 Shop Purity
Dr. Low: This incredible gel formula is especially useful for those suffer from facial flushing such as rosacea. For less severe cases of rosacea, prescription of anti-inflammatory topical containing metronidazole gel may be needed for long term control of redness and flushing. When used regularly, this wonder water-based gel works beautifully to reduce facial flushing while calming acneic-related skin irritations to give cosmetic improvement to the face. This product is best applied in the morning.
Redness with blemishes: SW1 Shop Skin Rescue
Dr. Low: This remarkable multi-tasking formula helps to reduce facial flushing, lighten pigmentation and combat acne without over drying out skin like many acne products often do. It contains power ingredients such as azelaic acid for a more targeted anti-redness solution.
Redness with dryness: Chai Blue Orchid
Dr. Low: Lack of moisture is one of the culprits behind unnecessary irritation to the skin. A consistent, gentle skincare regime minimises irritation to reactive skin. Blue Orchid is a detoxifying moisturising face cream that soothes inflamed and irritated skins. Its non-comedogenic formulation ensures that skin is well-hydrated while working to unclog pores, without leaving a greasy trail on skin’s surface turning your dull complexion supple and dewy fresh.
Redness with outbreaks: SW1 Shop Sleep Mode
Dr. Low: This carefully formulated shine-control gel help to deeply purify pores and minimise excess oil production leaving skin feeling mattified. Its anti-acne and anti-bacterial properties reduce the build up of dead skin and prevent skin from further pimple outbreaks. Apply on clean skin. Follow up with moisturiser and sunscreen as needed.
Redness with sensitivity: SW1 Shop Calming Balm
Dr. Low: Those with sensitive skin have reactive immune systems that read certain ingredients or weather conditions as foes and react to fight them off as foreign objects. This often leads to skin redness, burning, stinging, itching and peeling. The treatment should focus on protecting the skin barrier with emollients as well as dampening down the over-reacting immune systems with SW1 Shop Calming Balm when red, itchy and inflammation occurs.
Long term solutions for Redness: Vbeam laser
Dr. Low: Long suffering flushed faces may find relief from a pulsed dye laser, Vbeam. Unlike other lasers and lights (such as IPL) which does not specifically treat redness, Vbeam is the gold standard treatment for broken capillaries, redness and flushing. A series of sessions will result in visible reduction of redness, much to the patient’s satisfaction.
New solutions for Redness: Botulinum toxin
Dr. Low: Recently, wrinkle-fighter botulinum toxin has been found to also have a beneficial effect on red, flushed skin when given in super dilute doses superficially. MicroRefine, a targeted skin treatment where botulinum is delivered not to the muscles but to the outermost layers of the skin (via microinjections) will give complexion benefits which include reduction of redness, decrease in sebum and refinement of pores! Talk about killing two (three, four?) birds with one stone. No wonder MicroRefine has build such a huge following of late.
Even newer solutions for redness: Salmon DNA (Rejuran DNA Resurgence)
Dr Low: From our Japanese and Korean counterparts, we have Rejuran DNA Resurgence, which are salmon DNA extracts. This therapy stands apart from the others because it is the only one that is touted to improve your skin’s biological age by recharging and rejuvenating its DNA.
By improving your skin’s capacity to heal itself, red flushed skin has found unexpected reprieve, in addition to a myriad of other complexion regenerative advantages such as more supple skin, enhanced skin radiance, decreased wrinkles etc.